Wednesday, October 21, 2015

Promo Event Author Mike Philips

Today I’m excited to share a promotional post about
author Mike Philips. Mike Philips is the author of ‘Hazard
of Shadows’, ‘The World Below’, ‘Dawn of Ages’, and ‘Reign of the Nightmare Prince.’
These are Urban & Dark Fantasy books. Learn more about this author
here today!!

'The World Below' (Chronicles of the Goblin King #1):

In ancient times, magical creatures inhabited the earth.
They lived on mountaintops, in fields, at the bottom of lakes and rivers. But
that was long ago, before the human race declared war on the creatures they
feared and hated. Now the enchanted peoples are all but gone. The only place
they can hide from the ever increasing number of satellites and smart phones is
in the 'World Below'.

Mitch Hardy is going through a hard time in his life. In
his early twenties, he was working his way through college when he suffered an
accident that left him flat broke and physically deformed. When Mitch decides
to make a fresh start in a new town, things start looking up. He finds a place
to live, a decent job, good friends. He even meets a nice girl. Unknown to
Mitch, his new girlfriend is one of the ‘Elder Race’, what some call the ‘Faerie
Folk’. Mitch doesn’t know that Elizabeth is looking for a father she never
knew. The key to finding him is somehow tied up with the mysterious Blade of
Caro. Desperate, she steals the Blade from its protector, the despotic ruler of
the ‘World Below’, the Dragon of Worms, Baron Finkbeiner. When Elizabeth is
kidnapped by the Baron, Mitch is pulled into a world or magic and monsters he
never imagined.

'Hazard of Shadows' (Chronicles of the Goblin King #2):

The enchanted creatures of legend still exist, hidden
away in the secret places of the world. They take refuge from an age of camera
phones and government labs, from people who won’t let them live in peace. One
of these last places of safety is known as the World Below.

Ancient powers are at work. The Lords of Faerie seek to
revenge the death of Baron Finkbeiner and recover the mysterious Blade of Caro.
Hidden in the shadows, they await a chance to strike. The chance arises when an
old enemy escapes the splinter realm in which he is imprisoned. Anxious to
settle the debt, the Faerie Lords send him to finish the Lady Elizabeth and her
Champion once and for all.

After leading the revolution against the despotic ruler
of the World Below, Mitch Hardy has taken the throne. He never wanted to be
king. The whole idea of a government by right of combat sits poorly with him.
Growing evermore uneasy with his new position, he begins laying the framework
for self-rule. The enchanted peoples have known nothing but kings, but are
adapting quickly to this new idea of governing their own affairs. It goes well,
but Mitch’s plans are interrupted by the arrival of old enemies. Soon he is
fighting for his life against a hellish enemy, the likes of which he never
imagined.

'Dawn of Ages':

It’s the end of the world, but a new beginning for
humanity.

The war has lasted for generations. In this technological age, no longer must
humans risk their lives in combat. Fierce robots operated by remote control
make up the bulk of the militaries. Satellites in the atmosphere render the
heavens a frenzy of violent confrontation. However, the war has little effect
on everyday life. The bloodshed is minimal, the disruption to commerce even
less. It is a comfortable war. Most of the populace believe they have nothing
to fear. Little they know their world is about to come to an end.

'Reign of the Nightmare Prince':

Rakam's world is under attack by an ancient adversary
that has plagued his people for generations - or so it would seem. All around
him, these new Shaitani - supernatural beasts with mythical powers - murder the
innocent and burn any evidence a village even existed. Through his gift of True
Sight, that allows him to look into the greater world, Rakam sees the devastation
of his native lands, and the danger his people now face. The True Sight
abandons him however, after he is visited by an evil spirit, on a journey
through the desert. But there is still much to do. The loss doesn't stop Rakam
and his great-grandfather Mabetu from leading their people in a fight to save
the world they love. The quest ultimately unites the remaining villages under a
common goal, the fight for survival. The crusade against the invaders leads to
battles against not only the mystic and evil terrors native to Rakam's world,
but also with the alien powers that wish to destroy everything. Survival means
defeating an enemy with superior weapons and a thirst for blood. Although it
seems like a fight he's destined to lose, Rakam is willing to die to save his
world from certain annihilation.

Guest Post 'Modern Monsters':

Hello everyone, and thank you for
reading my guest post. My name is Mike Phillips and my new book is 'Hazard of Shadows'. For this guest post,
I was asked to talk a little about the magical creatures in the book. One of
the more unique aspects of the story is my use of goblins, so I thought it
might be interesting to explore that.

In folklore and literature,
goblins have always been evil creatures. To this day, goblins are hiding in our
closets and under our beds. They are wicked monsters that are no happier than
when they are burning fields or robbing cradles. In 'The World Below', Mitch Hardy unknowingly rescues a goblin from
getting hurt in a storm. Living on the fringes of society as they must to avoid
camera phones and governmental laboratories, goblins lead harsh lives. By a
small act of kindness, Mitch makes a true friend. Later on, this kindness is
returned. I don’t want to spoil the fun, so let’s just say a pan-dimensional,
man-eating garbage dumpster is involved. Friends like that are hard to find!
Once they have been won over, goblins are the best sort of friends. They may
have terrible manners, they may say awful things, they may smell bad, but we
can all be that way sometimes. In the end, my use of goblins helps us see the
best in humanity.

Writing about goblins was a riot!
Goblins live on the fringes of human society. They make their homes in junk
yards, abandoned buildings, sewer systems, and anywhere else people try to
avoid. Once they find a likely spot, the get to work. Goblins are clever with
tools and machinery. They will use and repurpose anything they can get their
hands on, so many of their dwellings look like they were designed by frat-boys.
Not always the best of neighbors, goblins have to take security seriously. They
construct elaborate pitfalls to keep themselves safe from enemies like
collapsing tunnels, pongee pits, and mechanical traps.

Goblins, like their human
counterparts, each have a unique personality. They live in what they call
crews, a sort of family, a lot like college dorm-mates. Each goblin has a
special skill. One might be a bully (a most desirable skill in the goblin
world). Another might be crafty at making traps. Some use sorcery or poison.
Others are good at machinery. Some just eat a lot (another desirable skill).
Goblins, in general, have a loose sense of morality. If it doesn’t hurt another
member of the crew, with the obvious exception of fighting, then it’s usually
okay. Fighting is always acceptable behavior, though if an enemy is around, a
goblin is expected to stop fighting the other crew member and start fighting
the enemy. Common sense rules like that are the cornerstone of goblin society.

That brings us to the topic of
goblin social structure. Goblin society is feudal. They organize in crews,
bound by familial ties or friendship. These associations are loosely formed,
and if a goblin wants to go it alone, no one holds a grudge. A crew may have
two or three leaders at a time. It is not unusual for goblins to disagree, so
sometimes they have no real leader at all. Though they fight with each other
like crazy, but they are deeply loyal in times of trouble and would do anything
for the other members of their crew. No female goblins appear in 'Hazard of Shadows' or 'The World Below', but that is a topic
for another time.

Thank you so much for joining me. I hope you enjoy
'Hazard of Shadows' and 'The World Below'.

Book Trailer 'The World Below':

About the Author:

Mike Philips grew up on a small farm in West Michigan,
living much the way people did at the turn of the century. Whether it was
growing fruits and vegetables or raising livestock, Mike learned the value of hard
work and responsibility at a young age.

While his friends spent their summers watching reruns of
bad sitcoms, Mike’s father gave him a very special gift. He turned off the
television. With what was affectionately referred to as “the idiot box” no
longer a distraction, Mike was left to discover the fantastic worlds that only
exist in books. When not tending sheep, gardening, building furniture, chopping
wood, or just goofing off, Mike spent his time reading.

With all that hard work at home, Mike was always eager to
go to school. He excelled as a student and went on to pursue a career in the
sciences. Working as a Safety Engineer in the
Insurance Industry, Mike soon became bored with the corporate grind. Writing
engaged him like nothing else. After a few novels and numerous short stories,
he thought getting published would be a pretty neat idea. And so, here it goes…

Mike Philips is the author of ‘Hazard of Shadows’, ‘The
World Below’, ‘Dawn of Ages’ and ‘Reign of the Nightmare Prince’. His short
stories have appeared in ParAbnormal Digest, Cemetery Moon, Sinister Tales,
Beyond Centauri, The World of Myth, Mystic Signals and many others. Online, his
work has appeared in Lorelei Signal, Kzine, Bewildering Stories, Midnight
Times, and Fringe. He is best known for his Crow Witch and Patrick Donegal
series.

No comments:

Post a Comment

I live in the Netherlands and I’m a fulltime Nurse and a fanatic book addict. Ever since I was a little girl I read everything I can get my hands on. This blog is all about those books and many more. I hope you enjoy your time here on Maureen’s Books.

Follow by Email

Followers

Google+ Followers

Goodreads Reading Challenge

Netgalley:

About Me

My name is Maureen, I’m 28 years old and I live with my husband and cat in The Netherlands. And
I’m a fulltime Nurse on a Traumatology department at an Academic Hospital. As
long as I can remember my life has been filled with books and stories. I grew
up with my mom and was just the two of us for a long time. But we were never
really just ‘with the two of us’. Our house has been filled with books and
bookshelves and the books never stopped coming. I grew up reading everything I
could put my hands on from ‘Mathilda’ and ‘James and the Giant Peach’ by Roald
Dahl, till all the Harry Potter books and the Twilight series. So growing up
I’ve have been in all sorts of different worlds. I used books as an escape when
things got tough but I also used books to find my peace and somehow grew in the
woman I am today.